California Black Media

Thousands of Black Californians Have Lost Their Health Insurance — Don’t Lose Yours

Five percent of the 225,231 Californians who lost their Medi-Cal coverage in June were African American. According to numbers from the California Department of Health Care Services (DHCS), around 14,000 Black Californians lost health insurance with the state’s safety net health care exchange because they didn’t turn in the required renewal paperwork to continue their Medi-Cal enrollment or their coverage was switched to the state’s insurance provider, Covered California.

Published

9 months ago

August 31, 2023

Oakland Post

Medi-Cal is California’s version of the Medicaid program, which offers free or low-cost health care access to low-income people across the nation.

By McKenzie Jackson
California Black Media

Five percent of the 225,231 Californians who lost their Medi-Cal coverage in June were African American.

According to numbers from the California Department of Health Care Services (DHCS), around 14,000 Black Californians lost health insurance with the state’s safety net health care exchange because they didn’t turn in the required renewal paperwork to continue their Medi-Cal enrollment or their coverage was switched to the state’s insurance provider, Covered California.

Mayra Alvarez, president of The Children’s Partnership, a Los Angeles-based organization that advocates for affordable health care service for families, said it is important for minorities to have health insurance.

“Especially, as we come out of this public health emergency that has disproportionately hit communities of color, we know health coverage is important to our families and livelihoods,” Alvarez said referencing the COVID-19 pandemic.

Medi-Cal is California’s version of the Medicaid program, which offers free or low-cost health care access to low-income people across the nation.

Alvarez and other California officials and advocates were speaking during an online video news conference last week organized by California Black Media and Ethnic Media Services.

The eligibility of 18 million Californians who are enrolled in Medi-Cal will be reviewed by the DHCS for the first time since 2020. As a result, between this summer and next spring, state officials estimate that 1.8 million to 2.8 million people could lose their Medi-Cal coverage.

To help Californians keep their insurance, DCHS has created a number of easy-to-navigate resources that state residents can access online. The state is also partnering with Community Based Organizations (CBOs) already connected to people in cities and towns across California to help educate the public through a bilingual campaign informing people about how they can prevent losing their health care coverage.

The Medi-Cal eligibility redetermination process, which officials call the “great unwinding,” is part of a massive undertaking taking place in every state to find out who qualifies for Medicaid.

A single Californian making $20,121 or less annually is eligible for Medi-Cal. In the past, participants had to prove their eligibility each year, but in March 2020 Congress suspended the income-verification requirement for Medicaid to make sure people had health insurance during the pandemic.

Those protections expired in March. The federal government has projected that 15 million Americans will lose their health insurance during the nationwide renewal process due to procedural reasons or excess income.

California’s DHCS began verifying the eligibility of Medi-Cal enrollees two months ago.

DHCS Assistant Deputy Director of Health Care Benefits and Eligibility Yingjia Huang said over one million Medi-Cal users had their eligibility reviewed in June. She expects that trend to continue monthly as batches of people come up for renewal until the end of the redetermination process in May 2024.

DHCS has an automatic renewal system for Medi-Cal users whose income the state can confirm on its own. The department is notifying people that they will receive a renewal packet in the mail via text, phone calls, and email.

Huang said individuals lost their Medi-Cal service either because they didn’t complete the renewal paperwork and return it to a county DHCS office by the June 30 deadline or they had an increase in income that allowed DHCS to move their coverage to an affordable health plan with Covered California.

Residents whose coverage was transitioned to Covered California are notified and able to review their new health plan, according to Covered California CEO Jessica Altman.

“California is well-positioned to help consumers through this process and help them keep coverage,” she noted.

Participants who were removed from Medi-Cal’s rolls but are still eligible for the service have until Sept. 30 to get their insurance reinstated. To do so, they must complete the renewal packet and return it to a DHCS office.

DCHS is advising all Californians to take the following steps: update their contact information online; check for mail from their county health office; create or check their online accounts; and complete their renewal forms (if they receive one in the mail).

DHCS and its partners, Huang stated, are committed to helping people maintain health insurance.

“Please be sure you are looking out for the yellow envelope and renewal packet,” she said. “We really hope we continue to keep our members on coverage.”

Community Clinic Association of Los Angeles County CEO and President Louise McCarthy said 64% of the 1.9 million Los Angeles County residents that visit CCALAC locations for health services are Medi-Cal enrollees. They can receive help completing the renewal forms at any of the 113 centers, McCarthy explained.

“A number of folks are letting that yellow packet slide,” she said. “If you haven’t seen the packet, reach out, and we will help you navigate the system.”

There were also 53,836 newly enrolled Medi-Cal participants in June, according to DHCS figures.

Alvarez, the president of The Children’s Partnership, said no one needs to lose their access to health care during the redetermination process.

“People are falling through the cracks,” she said. Keeping people enrolled, Alvarez added is “an all hands-on-deck effort.”

For more information on renewing your health insurance, visit DCHS online.

For individuals who receive Social Security Insurance benefits and don’t have online access, call, 1-800-772-1213 or contact your local Social Security office.

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Oakland Post: Week of May 22 – 28, 2024

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of May May 22 – 28, 2024

Published

1 day ago

May 24, 2024

Oakland Post

To enlarge your view of this issue, use the slider, magnifying glass icon or full page icon in the lower right corner of the browser window.

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California Black Media

Expect to See a New Flat Rate Fee of $24 on Your Electricity Bill

Last week, members of the California Public Utilities Commission voted to approve adding a $24.15 flat fee to monthly utility bills starting next year. On May 9, the California regulators took the unanimous vote in favor of the proposal which also reduced the cost of utilities per kilowatt hour but added the fixed charge to mitigate the loss. The new charge will be based on income with lower-income households paying between $6 to $12. Middle-class to high-income households will be expected to pay the full amount.

Published

1 week ago

May 18, 2024

Oakland Post

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By California Black Media

Last week, members of the California Public Utilities Commission voted to approve adding a $24.15 flat fee to monthly utility bills starting next year.

On May 9, the California regulators took the unanimous vote in favor of the proposal which also reduced the cost of utilities per kilowatt hour but added the fixed charge to mitigate the loss. The new charge will be based on income with lower-income households paying between $6 to $12. Middle-class to high-income households will be expected to pay the full amount.

CPUC President Alice Reynolds and environmental groups argue that the new rate encourages people to use more clean energy and assist in modernizing the grid.

“We’re marching towards the future we want to see; we want this load growth,” Reynolds said.

“One where we can replace gas-guzzling cars on our roads with EVs that run on clean electricity and emit less pollutants,” she added.

Although the fixed charge is supposed to lower the utility bill for residents, opponents of the charge argue that a flat rate increases the monthly bill for middle and high-income households.

California currently operates under a prepaid model and maintenance of the power grid is included in the overall usage rate. But with this new proposal, residents will pay more than double the national average of $11 for electricity.

Cynthia Martinez, a spokesperson for the Predictable Power Coalition, an advocacy group, argued that a flat rate is more equitable and will reduce the cost of utilities for struggling families.

“For people who live in hotter climates, who really have no choice but to run their air conditioning more often, they’re paying higher costs that go toward grid upkeep,” Martinez said.

In the past, Democrats stalled plans at the state Capitol to approve the flat fee. All 14 Democrats in the Senate Energy, Utilities, and Communications Committee abstained from voting during a hearing on the proposal to roll back the flat rate.

Oakland Post

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California Black Media

Commentary: Support Early Detection Technology to Save the Lives of Black Cancer Patients

In 2008, I received news no one ever wants to hear. I was diagnosed with Stage I breast cancer, with an ER/PR positive tumor type. The road to recovery was tough, taking more than a physical toll on my body. I grappled with the emotional and mental strain of navigating a health care system that too often fails to address the unique needs of Black women. There was no manual to guide me through this journey, no prescription to ease the burden, and no roadmap to help me navigate the challenges ahead.

Published

1 week ago

May 18, 2024

Oakland Post

Rhonda Smith, Executive Director, California Black Health Network

By Rhonda Smith, Special to California Black Media Partners

In 2008, I received news no one ever wants to hear. I was diagnosed with Stage I breast cancer, with an ER/PR positive tumor type.

The road to recovery was tough, taking more than a physical toll on my body. I grappled with the emotional and mental strain of navigating a health care system that too often fails to address the unique needs of Black women. There was no manual to guide me through this journey, no prescription to ease the burden, and no roadmap to help me navigate the challenges ahead.

The stark reality that Black women are 41% more likely to die from breast cancer than White women is a grim reminder of the systemic inequities that pervade our health care system. According to the American Cancer Society, Black Americans have the highest death rate and shortest survival rate of any racial or ethnic group in the country. This disparity extends beyond breast cancer, impacting colorectal, prostate, and lung cancers, among others.

To help overcome these inequities, we need to attack cancer at its roots; we must catch it early, and we must ensure the means to catch cancer early are accessible to the communities most at risk. I consider myself fortunate to have received a Stage 1 diagnosis. Yet, it pains me to know that for many others, their breast cancer is often detected in later, more advanced stages.

Fortunately, there is hope on the horizon. Some California congressmembers — particularly U.S. Rep. Raul Ruiz (D-CA-25) — are taking decisive action. Ruiz is a lead sponsor of a bill to dramatically expand access to cutting-edge early detection tools for Medicare beneficiaries, including millions of Black Americans in underserved communities. With bipartisan support, this bill is closer than ever to passage.

Named in honor of Nancy Gardner Sewell, a civil rights leader and passionate advocate for health justice, the Nancy Gardner Sewell Medicare Multi-Cancer Early Detection Screening Coverage Act would ensure Medicare has the latitude it needs to cover an exciting new class of cancer detection tests as soon as they’re cleared by the FDA.

These tests utilize the latest scientific achievements to identify cancer signals in a patient’s blood stream. They can pinpoint many different types of cancer from a single blood draw, dramatically improving doctors’ ability to detect cancers early and at stages where they are most treatable.

The next phase of our fight against cancer – and the disproportionate toll it takes on Black Americans – starts by urging Congress to pass the Nancy Gardner Sewell Medicare Multi-Cancer Early Detection Screening Coverage Act and ensuring the benefits of this legislation reach all corners of our communities.

I don’t advocate for change for myself, but for every Black woman who has faced, or will face, a similar battle.

Together, we can rewrite the narrative of health care, catch and treat cancer early, and ensure that every woman has the opportunity to thrive, regardless of her race or background.

About the Author

Rhonda Smith, Executive Director of the California Black Health Network, leads initiatives to advance health equity for Black Californians, leveraging her expertise from roles including consulting and spearheading health disparities initiatives for BIPOC communities. With an MBA from the University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business and a B.S. in Civil Engineering from Virginia Tech, Rhonda has led transformative projects like the LiveHealthy OC Initiative and the Susan G. Komen® Circle of Promise California Initiative to address health disparities and promote whole person care approaches.